Pet-cock opening and closing device



I. H. ROUSE AND A. IVI. DE LIGNE. PETCOCK GPEIIIIIG AND CLOSING DEVICE. Amlwnoa man ma. 25. 192|.

f. Patented Jan. 3, 3.922.

f Prf le @2Mo-e.

tpplcation filed January 25, 1922..

T all Qtr/'rom if, may concern Be it known that we, donn llALn .lieven and Animar flotmn nn Liann, citizens oli the llnited States, and residents ot lian Francisco, county ot San Francisco and State of ("alitornia7 have invented a and useful leteC/ock Opening and Closing Beides, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention, while relating in `general to attachments or accessories l'or automobiles, ha s reference more particularly to a tool or device for opening and closing petcocks or the like which are ordinarily locatedvin more or less inaccessible places on the motor of the automobile, butlwhich must be opened and closed at certain times for testingor otherwise ascertaini the com dition ot' the lubricant supply of the automobile. g

ln its preferred embodiment the invention is intended to be associated with petcocks situated in the crank case of an automobile engine or in the transmission case. As en example ot the application of the invention. the accompanying drawing illustrates the advantages of the same used as an attachment of Ford automobiles, in which n; is associated with the customary pair of petcocks located in the base ot the transmission case and used, in most instances, a means or" testing the level ci the oil supply. ln carrying out the test by means of these petcocks, the level of the oil may be ascertained by opening one or the other, and it is extremely inconvenient to ogen and close the same due to their inacessilfe` location. The device proposed by the present invention includes as one of its rent few tures a relatively long manipulating tool which is maintained operatively associated with one oi' the petcocks and with the manipulating handle of the tool terminating4 Where it may be easily and conveniently actuated for opening or closing the petcock.

One of the objects of the invention, aside from the advantages above mentioned, is to produce a device or tool which may be manu- Jactured at a comparatively low cost, easily applied, and capable of carrying; out its intended use with the greatest of etliciency.

nasmuch as there are two ot these petcocks to he openen and closed when occasion arises, and as they are positioned in close proximity one to the other, a further object ofthe invention is to so arrange the device Serial lilo. 435,233.5.

that it may be shifted from one petcocli to another for selectivelyY opening,` or closing either of the two. v d

ll'iith these and turther objects in vie, a detailed description will now follow with reference to the figures in the drawina.. in which Figure l is a view ,in side' elevation and partly in section ot the `front. part of a motor vehicle, inchiding the engine, andshowing the invention asV applied in use; lligure is i detail view in plan showing he application of the invention, and Figure 3 is a perspective view of the device apart from the automobile.

Considering the motor vehicle to have the conventional type oli engine A, c ank case ll and transmission C, with the customary oil Well D arranged as a single casting` between the crank case l and the base ot the transmission casing C, the oil supply should be kept at a certain level in the well, and for the purpose of testing the level or' the saine, pet-cocks D1 and l? are arranged in the well and are adapted to be opened or closed for the purpose stated. I

ln opening or closing these petcocks without the; use. of the present invention it is necessary to reach under the car, which is extremely inconvenient.

The device or tool for opening or closing the petcocks includes a. relatively long rod (5) one end of which carries a socket (G) which is adapted to 'fit over the liattened end ot the valve stem, with the opposite end ot' the rod terminatingin a hand grip or handle (7). ills a convenient means of mountingl or attachii-ig;Y 'the device it is preferred to use a bracket made from a single piece of strap metal such as (5) our end of which has an opening through which the rod` (5) passes, with the opposite cnd twisted so that the flat portion is benthorizontally and with the eX- treme end thereof bent inwardly at right anglei to the straight part, and including,r an opening; as at. (9). This bracket may be attached on thc under side ot' the. runningr hoard, with one ot' the bolts which connects the fender to the running board passing,l through the opening (9), as best shown in Figures l and 2. The end of the inwardly presented part of the bracket may abut against the liang'e oi' the fender to add rigidity to the structure.

To maintain the socket (6) in engagement with the petcock a suitable coil spring (l0) may encircle the rod (5) with the same conlined between the bracket (8) and a pin (11) which passes through the rod; the tendency of the spring being to push the rod inwardly and hold the socket in engagement with the petcock, so that the jar or vibration 'incident to the travel of the vehicle will not disengage the device.

vrod, so that an outward pull, maybe imparted to rod to overcome the influence of the spring (10) and disengage the socket (6); whereupon the rod may be dropped downto engage the lower one of the petcocks. In this way the device is really interchangeable 'to selectively open Vor close either one of the petcocks.

It should be noted that the socket (6) is made in a novel manner in that it includes a. fiat piece of metal stamped out and bent upon itself, as best shown in Figure 3.

As mentioned above, the' device would seem best applicable to Ford automobiles; at the same tune, the invention should notfbe construed as limited to this particular use,

as its advantages may be realized in other instances where like results are to be accomplished.

We claim:

A -device of the class described comprising a relatively long rod having a socket formed at one end, said socket comprising an oblong shaped cap produced from a. single strip of sheet metal, the opposite side edges of said strip being first cut out to leave ears at the four corners of the strip and then bent upon itself to provide said cap and with the' ears bent inwardly in confronting position to close the top and bottom of the cap, the opposite end of said rod terminating in a hand grip, a bracket strap having a relatively large opening through which the rod extends for supporting the device onan automobile, the attaching end of the strap being twisted and bent at right angles with a bolt opening therein made to receive a. running board bolt of the automobile and with the bent end of the strap adapted to bear against a fiange on the fender of the automobile, and a coiled spring on the rod adapted to maintain the socket in engagement with a valve stem.

JOHN HAYLE ROUSE. ALBERT MOOR-E DE LIGNE.' 

